Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman condemned the NFL in his weekly press conference on Thursday, giving his take on the explanation of why NFL ratings have sharply declined this season.
“Because the league isn’t fun anymore,” Sherman said. “Every other league, you see players have a good time. It’s a game. This isn’t politics. This isn’t justice. This is entertainment. And they’re no longer allowing the players to entertain. They’re no longer allowing the players to show any kind of personality, any kind of uniqueness, any individuality, because they want to control the product, they want to control the messaging.”
The three-time Pro Bowler went on to point out the NFL’s hypocrisy with their sponsorships,
They say we’re influencing kids. And that’s their biggest ploy. You don’t want to be a bad influence to kids, you don’t want to be a bad role model. And I can agree with that. But in the same breath you can’t say Budweiser is the official sponsor of the NFL and we’re trying to influence kids. So, you know, there’s a ton of hypocrisy but it doesn’t matter because we don’t control it.
When a reporter asked about the NBA’s players having the same type of feelings about their league, Sherman replied,
I think the NBA made an adjustment. Their players were unhappy, they went on strike, they got a new commissioner. The new commissioner has made it a lot more fun, he’s a lot more lenient on the guys. They’re out there shooting threes and putting whatever signs up, they have personality. You can think of James Harden’s [‘stir-the-pot’ celebration] – there’s a chance in the NFL you might get fined, there’s a chance you get a penalty on a play like that.
Sherman is known for being outspoken. He’s not alone in the way he feels about the NFL’s strict policies on showing personality, due to the high number of fines for “excessive celebrations” this season.
His comments are just the latest in a series of events that have led to an increasing number of NFL players frustrated with the policies of the league and commissioner Roger Goodell.
Washington Redskins cornerback Josh Norman was fined $10,000 after he pretended to shoot an imaginary bow and arrow because the NFL claimed this “promoted violence.”
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown was also fined for twerking after scoring a touchdown because of its sexual nature.
It seems year after year, professional sports have also grown increasingly political. ESPN received backlash after pushing black lives matter and gun control at the ESPYs. And after the Dallas shooting in July that killed five police officers, the NFL would not allow Dallas Cowboys players to honor the policemen with an “arm in arm” decal on the back of their helmets.
One could assume the ratings drop also has to do with San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick protesting the national anthem with handfuls of players around the league joining his cause. A recent Rasumussen poll showed that almost “32 percent of adults say they’re less likely to watch NFL game telecasts because of the Colin Kaepernick-led player protests.”
Along with sitting down for the national anthem, Kaepernick has also worn socks depicting police officers as pigs.
Regardless of the exact reasons for the ratings drop, it appears both players and fans are unhappy. After hearing Sherman’s assessment, the NFL might be wise to take a look at their policies if they want their ratings back up.
View Richard Sherman’s full week 9 press conference below. His remarks about his problems with the NFL are throughout the video, but he begins commenting on the NFL’s declining ratings around the 9:50 mark: